Automatically adjustable end guides for calender rolls

ABSTRACT

THE DISCLOSURE RELATES TO AUTOMATICALLY ADJUSTABLE END GUIDES FOR CALENDER ROLLS, AND IS PARTICULARLY ADAPTED FOR END GUIDE ADJUSTMENT FOR ROLLS WHICH MAY BE ADAPTED TO CHANGE RELATIVE POSITION BECAUSE OF ROLL CROSSING TECHNIQUES. THE AUTOMATIC GUIDE ADJUSTMENT IS ACHIEVED BY USE OF A SLAVE BAR ASSOCIATED WITH ADJUSTABLE JOURNALS CARRYING THE CALENDER ROLLS. THE SLAVE VAR IS CONNECTED THROUGH APPROPRIATE LINKAGE TO THE GUIDES WHICH ARE ADJUSTABLY MOUNTED TO FOLLOW THE SLAVE BAR AND MAINTAIN CLOSE SPACED PROXIMITY WITH RESPECT TO THE ROLLS WITHOUT ACTUALLY TOUCHING THE ROLLS TO CAUSE SCORING. THE SPECIFICS OF THE ADJUSTABLE MOUNTING INCLUDE A SPRING LOADING TO URGE EACH GUIDE TO A PREDETERMINED POSITION, AND SLIDING ADJUSTABILITY ON AT LEAST TWO POINTS WITHIN THE SURFACE OF THE GUIDE ON A RADIUS WITH RESPECT TO ONE OF THE ROLLS.

' Match 16, 1971 g, SEANQR ETAL 3,570,054

AUTOMATICALLY ADJUSTABLE END GUIDES FOR CALENDER ROLLS Filed Dec, 31, 1968 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 INVENTORS CHARLES G. LAKE BY REX C.SEANOR am s wm FIG.4

ATTORNEYS.

March 15, 1971 c, SEANOR ETAL 3,570,054

' AUTOMATICALLY ADJUSTABLE END GUIDES FOR CALENDER ROLLS Filed Dec. 31, 1968 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 FIG 7 INVENTORS ATTORN EYS.

United States Patent T 3,570,054 AUTOMATICALLY ADJUSTABLE END GUIDEE FOR CALENDIER ROLLS Rex C. Seanor and Charles G. Lake, Akron, Ohio, as-

signors to Adamson United Company, Akron, Ohio Filed Dec. 31, 1968, Ser. No. 788,139 Int. Cl. B2911 7/14; B29h 3/00; B30!) 3/04 US. Cl. 182 12 Claims ABSTRACT OF THE DISCLOSURE The disclosure relates to automatically adjustable end guides for calender rolls, and is particularly adapted for end guide adjustment for rolls which may be adapted to change relative position because of roll crossing techniques. The automatic guide adjustment is achieved by use of a slave bar associated with adjustable journals carrying the calender rolls. The slave bar is connected through appropriate linkage to the guides which are adjustably mounted to follow the slave bar and maintain close spaced proximity with respect to the rolls without actually touching the rolls to cause scoring. The specifics of the adjustable mounting include a spring loading to urge each guide to a predetermined position, and sliding adjustability on at least two points within the surface of the guide on a radius with respect to one of the rolls.

Heretofore it has been known that there have been material guides associated with calender rolls to prevent the spread of material laterally of the rolls as it is squeezed in through the bite thereof. These guides when dealing with rubber and metal rolls can actually contact the rolls occasionally without serious problems, since scoring of the rolls does not harm the rubber since the final rolled material is not the finished rubber product. Also, these prior art guides have not been confronted with the problem of roll crossing which changes the angular relationship between the rolls because such techniques were not necessary or had not been developed. However, with the advent of roll crossing, and the rolling of plastics, and particularly very thin plastics, into final sheet form through such calender rolls, the guides can no longer touch the rolls in all instances, and must conform to such changes of angle as occur with roll crossing.

The general object of the present invention is to meet the needs of the art by providing material guides for calender rolls which automatically adjust to the configuration and positioning of the rolls without actually contacting the rolls and regardless of roll crossing between the rolls.

A further object of the invention is to provide material guides connected in a slaved relationship to the journal housings supporting calender rolls whereby movement of such journal housings to effect roll crossing of such rolls automatically adjusts the guides to such configuration of the rolls as to provide automatic material guidance without scoring the rolls.

The aforesaid objects of the invention and other objects which will become apparent as the description proceeds are achieved by providing an automatically adjusting guide mechanism for calender rolls which includes at least one pair of parallel calender rolls, a stock guide comprising two laterally spaced forms contoured to fit into the bite between the rolls in close spaced relation to the rolls, but usually out of engagement therewith, means to adjust the laterally spaced relation of the forms, and slave link means connected to the journal means and to the forms to automatically adjust the forms for any change of angular z-relation between the calender rolls.

For better understanding of the invention, reference should be had to the accompanying drawings wherein:

Patented Mar. 16, 1971 FIG. 1 is a schematic illustration of the material feed and position of the guide with respect to a plurality of rolls arranged in a conventional rolling configuration;

FIG. 2 is a schematic front elevation of the rolls of FIG. 2 showing how the material is spread when it is flattened as it passes from roll to roll;

FIG. 3 is a schematic illustration showing how the guide must be tilted to conform to the roll crossing configuration between the rolls;

FIG. 4 is a front elevational view of the guide associated with the calender rolls, and comprising a preferred embodiment of the invention;

FIG. 5 is a greatly enlarged partial cross-sectional view of one of the guides of FIG. 4 taken on line 5-5 thereof;

FIG. 6 is an enlarged cross-sectional view of one of the guide pins associated with the guide taken on line 6-6 of FIG. 5; and

FIG. 7 is a cross-sectional view of the spring loading associated with the guide taken on line 77 of FIG. 5.

NATURE OF THE PROBLEM FIGS. 1 and 2 illustrate the general arrangement of a typical calender roll assembly with which the guide of the invention might be associated. Specifically, the calender is made up of four rolls numbered 104.6, where roll 10 is set up to have roll crossing features, and rolls 12, 14 and 16 may have any suitable or desired positioning means provided therefor. Material 18 is fed from a hopper 20 onto a conveyor 22, to then fall down into a mass 18:: at the bite between rolls 10 and 12. Material is contained in the bite by appropriate material end guides 24 and 26, as best seen in FIG. 2 of the drawings. FIG. 2 also illustrates how the material 18 is spread as it passes from roll to roll so as to be spread to a thin web as it comes off the bottom of roll 16. A pair of tensioning rolls 26 and 28 provide proper tension on the web off the bottom of roll 16, and the web may then pass between a pair of embossing rolls 30 to the takeup, as is standard in the art.

The necessity for the adjustable guides of the invention is most clearly illustrated with respect to FIG. 3 of the drawings, which shows rolls 10 and 12 with guide 24 in the usual position without any roll adjustment in FIG. 3a. In FIG. 31), roll 10 has been crossed by lowering the end illustrated as coming out of the paper and raising the opposite end which causes guide 26 to slant or cock to the right as illustrated. The contouring situation is illustrated in FIG. 30 where roll 10 has been raised at the end considered as coming out of the paper and lowered at the opposite end so as to cock guide 26 to the left if it is to conform to the configuration of the cocked roll surfaces. Naturally, when one guide cocks one way, the guide on the opposite end is going to cock the other way because of the difference in relationship of the rolls when roll crossing of roll 10 occurs.

The actual structural features of the invention are shown in FIGS. 4-7. Specifically, with reference to FIG. 4, roll 10 is mounted on each end by a journal box 40 and 42. As is usual in the art, the journal boxes 40 and 42 are oppositely moveable vertically limited amounts both up and down to provide desired roll crossing characteristics. For example, in the typical situation where roll 10 might be 36 inches in diameter, and 10 feet long, the journal boxes 40 and 42 might move from a center line position 1 /2 inches up and down to give a 3 inch total roll crossing characteristic when the journal boxes are moved in opposite directions.

The guides 24 and 26 are indicated generally by these numerals in FIG. 4, but actually each guide comprises a face plate indicated by suffix a, a backing plate indicated by sufiix b, and a carrying plate indicated by suffix 0, re-

spectively. The carrying plate indicated by suffix c is connected to an appropriate housing indicated by suffix d. The housings 24d are respectively threadably engaged on a screw shaft 44, which has reversed threading on both halves thereof, as clearly indicated in FIG. 4, so that driving of the screw 44 by an appropriate motor 46 connected through its screw drive shaft 48 will affect simultaneous inward and outward movement of the housings. The motor 46 is mounted to a frame member 50. A corresponding frame member 52 is mounted at the other side of the calender roll 10.

Each of the backing plates designated by suffix I) is connected through a plunger to a respective pressure cylinder, indicated by numerals 54 and 56 respectively, which cylinders are mounted to their respective housings indicated by sufiix d. The cylinders 54 and 56 control the vertical relationship of backing plates indicated by sufiix b, respectively. Thus, the cylinders 54 and 56 may be actuated to move the backing plates 24b and 26b and the guide or facing plates 24a and 26a, respectively, upwardly away from the rolls 10 and 12 when the guides 24 and 26 are not to be used. The carrying plates indicated by suflix c are fixedly mounted to the housings.

As a critical part of the invention, a slave bar 60 is pivotally mounted at about its center to a fixed frame 62 by pin 64. The bar 60 is connected at opposite ends to links 66 and 68, respectively through appropriate pivotal pins 66a and 68a. Each of the links 66 and 68 is slidably received through sleeves 70 and 72, which are mounted in fixed relationship to frames 50 and 52, respectively. The links 66 and 68 are limited in their relative sliding movement with respect to the sleeves 70 and 72 by appropriate slots 70a and 72a in the sleeves and a pin 74 and 76 carried in fixed relationship by each of the links 66 and 68, respectively. Hence, it should be quite clearly understood that as journal boxes 40 and 42 move vertically, and one always moves in the opposite direction of the other, the bar 60 will pivot around pin 64 causing a slave relationship of bar 60 to follow in exact parallel relationship to the surface of roll 10. This parallel relationship is then translated to the face plates 24 designated by suffix a through a roller link arrangement indicated generally by numeral 80 and 82 connected to each respective face plate. Essentially, each roller link 80 and 82 contains a roller 81 and 83 which simply rolls on top of the bar 60 and is connected through appropriate linkage 80a, 80b, 80c, and 80d to the respective face plate, all as is quite clearly shown in FIG. of the drawings.

The details of the material guide construction in total combination is more clearly shown with respect to FIG. 5

of the drawings. Specifically, the configuration of the face plate 24a is quite clearly shown as coming down to a sharp peak 100 as close as possible to the bite between the rolls and 12. The configuration of backing plate 247) is shown in dotted lines, as is the configuration of the guide support housing 240. The backing plate 24b is pivotally mounted by a horizontally positioned pin 102 secured to the backing plate and to the linkage 104 connecting from pressure cylinder 54. The linkage 104 is slidable through housing 24d. This allows the entire backing plate to be pivotal in a vertical plane around pin 102, the function of which will be more fully understood as the description proceeds. The linkage 80 and its relationship to slave bar 60 is also clearly shown in FIG. 5. The linkage 80a con necting from the roller carrier 80b at the top has a pivot pin 80c pivotally mounting a bottom link 80d in position as is quite clearly shown. The link 80d has an elongated slot 80a which cooperatively receives a pin 106 which is fixedly mounted to the face plate 24a. Hence, it should be understood that the pin 106 engaging the bottom end of slot 80a limits the maximum downward movement of face plate 24a. The face plate 24a is normally urged in a downward direction, or in the direction of an arrow 108 by a suitable spring 110. The spring 110 has one end thereof hooked over a pin 112 directly mounted to face If plate 24a, and the other end mounted over a pin 114 mounted directly to the backing plate 24b. This configuration is most clearly shown in FIG. 7 of the drawings, which shows the downwardly urging action effected by spring on plate 24a in its relationship between the facing plate 24a and backing plate 24b.

The actual relative movement of the face plate 24:: relative to the backing plate 24b is controlled by guide slots indicated by dotted lines and 122 formed in the backing plate 24b. Guidance through these slots is best seen in FIG. 6, and is achieved by a pin 124 connected in threadable relationship to face plate 24a and carrying a cam follower 126 in locked relationship thereon. The slots 120 and 122, which are quite visible in FIG. 5, are at different angles. The slots are formed so as to be perpendicular to a radius from the axis of the roll 12 through the center line of the respective slots 120 and 122. In this way, it is quite clear that face plate 24a can only move in a direction substantially tangential to the surface of roll 12, and that in effect any part of the surface of face plate 24a will only move in a direction tangential to such surface. In order to allow vertical movement of the backing plate 241) as controlled by its appropriate actuating cylinder 54, elongated slots 130 and 132 respectively are cut into the supporting plate 240, again as is clearly shown in FIG. 6.

Thus, it should be quite clear that with the backing plate 24b pivotally mounted by pin 102, and the face plate 24a being relatively movable with respect to the backing plate 24b by means of the slots 120 and 122, and with the face plate 24a normally being urged in a direction of arrow 108 by spring 110, and limited in such downward movement by pin 106 engaging the bottom end of slot 80c, and with the actual bottom end of slot 80c being con trolled by its direct linkage connection to slave bar 60, face plate 24a, which actually forms the material guide, will react in direct relationship to the movement of slave bar 60, and automatically reposition face plate 24a upon any movement of roll 10 to conform to the exact configuration in the bite between such rolls 10 and 12.

As is usual in this type of guide, the face plate 24a will be made of some suitable material, preferably other than metal, for example wood, aluminum, Teflon coated material, or the like. Any person skilled in this art would know the most suitable material with which the face plate should be made to incorporate the best action with the type of material being passed through the calender rolls. Normally, the support plate 240 is of cast iron, and the backing plate 24b is of steel.

The apparatus is not limited to use with a 4-roll inverted L calender, as the guide plates could be mounted between two vertically spaced rolls or between any pair of rolls forming a roll nip and horizontally and/or vertically offset from each other. Thus, the roll guides may move horizontally in some assemblies.

The cylinders 54 and 56 can move the guides up so that the bite at the top roll 12 can be opened by such roll being raised up to 3 inches. The end guides may bear upon the rolls if desired.

Hence, it should be understood that the objects of the invention have been achieved by providing an adjustable facing plate which is connected in direct relation to the slave bar so that it follows movement of the journal housing supporting the roll which is provided with roll crossing features. The movement of the guide in any direction is automatic to compensate for any crossing regardless of the relationship of the stock guides because of the slave roller tie relationship. Hence, a smaller vertical movement of the guide face plate occurs when the guides are nearer the center of the roll than the ends of the roll.

In accordance with the patent statutes only one best known embodiment of the invention has been illustrated and described in detail. It is to be understood that the invention is not limited thereto or thereby, but that the inventive scope is defined in the appended claims.

What is claimed is:

1. An automatically adjustable guide mechanism for calender rolls, comprising:

a frame;

a pair of calender rolls arranged to form a bite;

journal means carried by the frame and rotatably supporting each roll;

means to adjust the journal means supporting one roll to change the relationship of the bite between the rolls;

a slave bar operatively associated with the adjustable journal means which remains parallel to the axis of such roll during any movements thereof;

at least one guide member pivotally connected to the slave bar to follow the movements thereof;

a backing plate associated with each form; and

means connecting each said guide member to its respective backing plate, the means including cam means guiding said guide member so that at least two points thereon are moved substantially tangentially with respect to the surface of the other roll.

2. A guide mechanism according to claim 1 where a pressure means operatively engages said guide member to force it toward said rolls.

3. A guide mechanism as in claim 1 and comprising means pivotally positioning said slave bar intermediate its ends for pivotal movement parallel to movement of said one roll, said guide member having an end adjacent the roll bite complementary in shape thereto, and said guide member being positioned for movement in a vertical plane.

4. An automatically adjusting guide mechanism for calender rolls which includes:

at least one pair of calender rolls arranged in side by side relation to form a bite, adjustable journal means to adjust the side by side relation of the rolls, a stock guide comprising two laterally spaced forms contoured to fit into the bite between the rolls at closed spaced relation to the rolls, but out of engagement therewith, means to adjust the laterally spaced relation of the forms, and slave link means connected to the journal means and to the forms to automatically adjust the forms to the bite between the rolls for any change of relation between the rolls.

5. A guide mechanism as in claim 1 where the slave link means includes:

a slave bar pivotally secured intermediate its ends to a frame means and positioned above said rolls, means pivotally supporting each of said forms for move ment in vertical planes defined by said forms, and

support means for each of said forms connecting between corresponding ends of a said form and said slave bar to tilt said forms on said pivotal means in opposite directions with adjustment in position of said journal means.

6. A guide mechanism according to claim 1 where only one of the rolls is adjustable to change the side by side relation of the rolls, and the slave link means includes:

a slave bar operatively connected to said adjustable rolls which bar is substantially the length of said roll and moves therewith so as to remain in substantially parallel relation to the surface thereof.

connecting link means pivotally connecting each form operatively to the slave bar, and

fixed cam guide means slidably received by each form to provide controlled tilting movement of the form on a radius from the axis of the other roll upon movement of the connecting link means.

7. A mechanism according to claim 1 which includes a separate backing plate pivotally connected to each con necting link means and each carrying a separate cam guide means associated with a respective form, and spring means between each backing plate and its respective form normally urging such form toward the bite of the rolls.

8. A guide mechanism according to claim 1 where each backing plate is adjustable laterally with respect to the bite of the rolls, and includes means connected between each respective backing plate and its form to normally resiliently urge the form toward the bite of the rolls.

9. A mechanism according to claim 1 where the slave bar comprises:

a bar about the length of said one roll arranged in spaced parallel relation to the axis of the other roll and pivotally connected to the frame at about the midpoint of the length thereof,

actuator bars slidably mounted to the frame and one pivotally connected to each end of the long bar with the other end of each actuator bar riding on a respective journal means at each end of said one roll.

10. In a calender roll assembly having a pair of calender rolls arranged to form a bite for compressing and forming material fed thereto into a web, a frame, and adjustable journal means supporting the rolls and mounted to be selectively movable relative to the frame to at least provide roll crossing adjustment, an end guide assembly for the material fed to the bite, comprising:

a pair of supports mounted in laterally adjustable relation to the frame;

a stock guide backing plate carried by each support;

a stock guide face plate mounted on each backing plate for movement in a vertical plane tangentially to the surface of one of the rolls;

a slave bar extending parallel to one of the rolls and pivotally connected to the journal means to maintain the bar in parallel relation to the roll when the roll is tilted; and

link means connecting the slave bar to each of the guide face plates to effect movement of the face plates ac cording to the movement of the slave bar.

11. The end guide assembly according to claim 10 further including means to effect vertical movement of the backing plates relative to the supports.

12. The end guide assembly according to claim 10 wherein the facing plates are mounted on their respective backing plates by means of at least two cams, the cams being received in slots in the backing plates.

References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 2,289,933 7/ 1942 Rankin 182(1) 2,469,633 5/1949 Corson 18-2(C) 2,534,296 12/1950 Pike et al 182(C) 2,728,103 12/1955 Benedict et a1. 182(C) 2,965,920 12/ 1960 Whittum 182(C) 3,273,199 9/1966 Kleinewefers 182(C) 3,346,913 10/1967 Lake et al 182(C) FOREIGN PATENTS 1,028,955 3/1953 France 182(C) I. SPENCER OVERHOLSER, Primary Examiner R. L. SPICER, JR., Assistant Examiner US. Cl. X.R.

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE CERTIFICATE OF CORRECTION Patent No. 3 Dated March 16 1971 Inventofl Rex C Seanor et a1 It is certified that error appears in the above-identified patent and that said Letters Patent are hereby corrected as shown below:

Column 1, line 11, "disclosure" should read inventi Column 4, line 51, "L" should read ell Column line 38, "closed" should read close Signed and sealed this 13th day of July 1971 (SEAL) Attest:

EDWARD M.FLETCHER,JR. WILLIAM E SCHUYLER, JP Attesting Officer Commissioner of Patents I-AI-lll an Ann nn cc 

